Bridging the Gap: How governments and faith actors can work together to end the violent discipline of children, sharing experience from South Africa and Nigeria
Presented By:
Faith spaces are frequently the first place where caregivers seek guidance making faith institutions powerful stakeholders either as drivers of harm or as agents of positive change on violence against children.
In many regions, certain forms of violence against children are widely accepted as “discipline: Some faith leaders even frame harsh punishment as “godly correction”. This is harmful to children’s development and wellbeing.
Faith leaders can be essential stakeholders in translating non-violent discipline laws and policies into practice but they require unique tailored engagement to become allies.
The session will explore how faith can be both a resource or a roadblock in this shared task.
Participants will watch a short video in which an adult survivor reflects on her childhood with a father who was a chronic abuser and a respected church member. This will open space for honest reflection and small group discussions on how faith teachings, leadership, and community norms can either perpetuate harm or promote safety and will draw on voices of course graduates from across Africa and Shirley Ramen, a former Chief Director in South Africa’s government and a course graduate
Speakers
- Shirley Ramen, former Chief Director of Child Protection, Guateng, South Africa
Session Aims
- To assist people of faith and faith leaders to understand and reimagine “godly parenting” as explicitly non-violent within their cultural contexts
- To challenge harmful interpretations of sacred texts and doctrines that legitimize violent forms of harsh discipline that contradict national policies
- To support and strengthen practical, faith-rooted pathways for safe, dignified child-raising and positive parenting that align with wider government policies
Session Format
The one hour session will be interactive and will be led by a graduate of the SVRI course on Faith and Helping Children Thrive without Violence.
It will include showing one of the short course videos of a Nigerian survivor of violent discipline leading into small group discussions on the religious and cultural aspects of this practice and alternative approaches which are more in line with emerging legal and policy frameworks within the African continent.
Participants will be encouraged to self-reflect on their own religious and cultural beliefs and experiences on this theme.